The two arrived at the balcony one after the other. Xia Liang noticed Gu Yanxiao behind her and asked curiously, "Comrade Gu, why aren't you chatting with people inside? Why are you outside?" Gu Yanxiao quickly explained, "I didn't know this was a social gathering. My mom tricked me into coming. When I realized something was wrong, I saw you, Comrade Xia." He then asked curiously, "Comrade Xia, what brings you here?" He wondered if she really wasn't married. Xia Liang said, "This is the first time our factory has participated in a social gathering. I wasn't planning to come, but I'm the only unmarried girl in our office, so I thought I'd come and exchange ideas with colleagues from other factories." Although that wasn't her real purpose, she still had to make her reason sound more respectable. Gu Yanxiao replied, "Comrade Xia, you're such a positive and motivated comrade!" He was secretly overjoyed.
The two stood on the balcony for a while before going inside. After all, it was already late November, and while the heating inside kept them warm, they couldn't stand the cold after just a short time outside. Inside the venue, many people introduced themselves to each other. Quite a few people approached Xia Liang to chat, mostly women asking where she had her clothes made. Xia Liang sensed a business opportunity and exchanged contact information with the women who had asked her, suggesting they go shopping together another day. The women understood that this wasn't something they could discuss in person, so they all nodded in agreement. As for the men, most of them, seeing Gu Yanxiao following closely behind Xia Liang, gave up the idea of approaching him. Of course, there were also those who felt they were no less capable than Gu Yanxiao and thought he was just all looks and no talent, otherwise they would have never seen him before.
Midway through the banquet, Xia Liang felt she had met enough people, so she said goodbye to those around her, "Comrade Gu, it's getting late, I should go back." Gu Yanxiao said, "I didn't come here for exchange and learning in the first place. Since you're leaving, Comrade Xia, I'll take you back." Xia Liang nodded, then said goodbye to some acquaintances at the factory, and the two left. A cold wind was blowing outside, so Xia Liang quickly put on the cotton-padded coat she had worn outside. She got on the back of Gu Yanxiao's bicycle, and they hadn't gone far when she saw Xia Rong riding his bicycle to pick her up. Xia Liang called out, "Brother, I'm here." Xia Rong slammed on the brakes, stopping just as they had passed each other. He saw his sister sitting behind a man, and recognizing him as Gu Yanxiao, he quickly reached out his hand and said, "Comrade Gu, it's been a long time. What brings you to my sister today?" Gu Yanxiao quickly returned the handshake and said, "Brother, uh, Comrade Xia, hello. I had some business near the Cultural Palace today, and I happened to run into Comrade Xia Liang there. I was worried about her safety walking home alone so late, so I brought her back." He thought to himself how stupid he had been, mistaking Xia Rong for Xia Liang's husband, and how he had suffered for so long for nothing.
Xia Liang got off the bicycle and turned to Gu Yanxiao, saying, "Thank you, Comrade Gu. My brother is picking me up, so I won't trouble you to give me a ride." Gu Yanxiao didn't want to miss the opportunity to spend time together, so he said, "No trouble at all, it's on my way. I'll give you a ride." Xia Rong thought, "..." Who asked you to give me a ride? But he didn't refuse, after all, this guy had saved his sister, and he couldn't be too heartless and embarrass him. And so, the three of them on two bicycles headed towards Xia Liang's house.
After dropping the siblings off at home and saying goodbye, Gu Yanxiao happily rode his bike home. Opening the front door, he saw his parents still awake, sitting on the sofa watching TV. He greeted them cheerfully, "Mom and Dad, it's so late! Take care of yourselves!" Gu's parents exchanged a glance. It turned out that Gu's father understood Gu's mother's good intentions, which was why they had waited for their son so late. They had thought their son would be angry that his mother, Han Yulan, had lied to him, but they hadn't expected him to be in such a good mood. It seemed he had some unexpected surprise on the other end. Seeing their son whistling as he returned to the house, the old couple smiled at each other.
The next day, Xia Liang had just left the factory after get off work when she saw Gu Yanxiao standing tall under a big tree at the factory gate. She wondered why he was there. Then she saw him stride towards her: "Comrade Xia Liang, are you free tonight? I'd like to invite you to dinner." Seeing his intense gaze, Xia Liang agreed without hesitation, "No problem! I've been wanting to see a movie lately." Sitting on the back of Gu Yanxiao's bicycle, the person riding in front thought, "Wow, this feeling is amazing! The person I like has accepted my invitation. Does she like me too?" Xia Liang, behind him, thought, "Super handsome guy, a true cosmic-level heartthrob! In modern times, he'd be a top-tier superstar! That face, that body..." Xia Liang wiped her mouth, afraid her drool would spill out.
So the two arrived at the state-run restaurant. At the next table sat a man and a woman, probably a young couple on a date. From the moment they entered, their eyes were glued to Xia Liang and her companion. Gu Yanxiao went to the window to order, choosing four dishes and a soup: braised pork belly, sweet and sour spare ribs, stir-fried shredded potatoes with vinegar, and crucian carp soup—all Xia Liang's favorites. The next table only had one dish: stewed chicken with potatoes, and even then, it was mostly potatoes with very little chicken. Just before Xia Liang and her companion arrived, the man had told the girl that ordering too much would be wasteful, and that they needed to plan for the future. Seeing the lavish spread, Xia Liang said, "Won't we be able to finish all this?" Gu Yanxiao replied, "How could we? I'll probably finish it all. Don't worry, I'm fine with my salary. I don't smoke or drink, and I don't have many expenses. You don't need to worry about saving money for me." The man at the next table was sweating profusely, while the girl looked at Xia Liang with envy, thinking how lucky she was. Not only was her boyfriend so handsome, but he also had a high salary and was willing to spend money on him. She turned and glared at her boyfriend.
Just then, the door of the state-run restaurant opened again, and there was another young couple. Xia Liang followed Gu Yanxiao's gaze and saw the two people who made her jaw drop: Xia Rong and Zhou Xiaohui. Obviously, the two people opposite had also seen them, and they were both pretending that nothing had happened. Gu Yanxiao went up and invited the two of them to join him, and went to the window to order a few more dishes. When he came back, he saw the two people opposite him shrinking their heads like quails, while Xia Liang crossed her arms and glared fiercely at the two people opposite her. Xia Liang took a sip of tea and slowly said, "Aren't you going to confess yet?" Zhou Xiaohui glanced at Xia Liang's unpleasant expression and murmured softly, "Little Liangliang! We didn't mean to hide it from you. We just... well, cough cough, and you caught us." Xia Rong, who was standing to the side, went from looking guilty to having a serious expression: "And what about you two? What's going on between you and Comrade Gu?" The tables had turned, and now it was Xia Liang's turn. But who was Xia Liang? She was different from these simple and honest comrades. She had an expression that said, "Is this how you see me?" Her eyes swept back and forth between Xia Rong and Zhou Xiaohui: "You think I'm like you, secretly dating without telling me? You see Comrade Gu Yanxiao and me discussing work here, and you dare to question me? What? Do you think I'm like you two heartless people?" Zhou Xiaohui and Xia Rong lowered their heads even further.
Gu Yanxiao, standing to the side, was heartbroken. "Ahhh, I also want to be questioned about why I kept my relationship with Xia Liang a secret from my family. No, if I were dating Xia Liang, I couldn't possibly keep it a secret from anyone. So, my brother-in-law did make a mistake, and it's understandable that Xia Liang is angry. That's right, Xia Liang is not wrong."
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